Daily Archives : February 7, 2018

GOLDEN BOY PROMOTIONS’ WILDLY POPULAR SERIES RETURNS TO DOWNTOWN LA AND ESTRELLATV ON MARCH 16

NEW FAN-FRIENDLY TICKET PRICES FOR THIS EXCLUSIVE SERIES TO START AT ONLY $25

LOS ANGELES (Feb. 7, 2018): Following a 2017 that saw massive knockouts, shocking upsets and the rise of several Golden Boy Promotions prospects, LA FIGHT CLUB returns on March 16 for its inaugural 2018 show live from the Belasco Theater in Downtown, Los Angeles, Calif. and live on EstrellaTV’s Boxeo Estelar. The series will continue on April 6, June 1, July 6, Aug. 10, and Oct. 12, with more possible dates to follow.

“LA Fight Club was popular beyond any of our imaginations throughout 2017, and we are proud to bring it back,” said Oscar De La Hoya, CEO and Chairman of Golden Boy Promotions. “We saw a little bit of everything that boxing has to offer at the Belasco last year including upsets, knockouts, the development of future world champions, and I am looking forward to 2018 delivering even more.”

Among the highlights from 2017:

Virtually unknown outside of his native Philippines, lightweight “Ruthless” Romero Duno (16-1, 14 KOs) arrived at the Belasco Theater in March as an opponent to then-undefeated and hot prospect Christian “Chimpa” Gonzalez (18-1, 15 KOs). Less than six minutes later, Duno scored a brutal knockout that led to a contract with Golden Boy Promotions and has placed him in position for huge fights in 2018 and beyond.

Longtime Nicaraguan super featherweight contender Rene “Gemelo” Alvarado (28-8, 19 KOs), once again upset the apple cart as an opponent, forcing the corner of then-undefeated Venezuelan Roger “The Kid” Gutierrez (17-1-1, 14 KOs) to call off the July 14 main event in the seventh round of a scheduled eight. Alvarado would go on to knock off former world-title contender Denis Shafikov (38-4-1, 20 KOs) later in the year.

One-time highly touted super featherweight prospect Charles Huerta (20-5, 12 KOs) resurrected his career in the April main event at the Belasco Theater, knocking out then-unbeaten prospect Ivan “Striker” Delgado (11-1-1, 4 KOs). Once the referee waived off the bout following Huerta’s two knockdowns of Delgado in the third round, the Paramount, California native’s career was back in full swing.

Fighters appearing on the March 16 card will be announced shortly.

LA FIGHT CLUB is an innovative boxing series that showcases the best and brightest stars of the exclusive Golden Boy Promotions stable. The events will be sponsored by Tecate, “THE OFFICIAL BEER OF BOXING” and Casa Mexico Tequila. The series will return to the Belasco Theater in Downtown Los Angeles, Calif. on Friday, March 16, along with EstrellaTV’s Boxeo Estelar. Mark your calendars and buy your tickets for the upcoming shows on April 6, June 1, July 6, Aug. 10, and Oct. 12.

Tickets for LA FIGHT CLUB start at the fan-friendly price of $25 and are available for purchase now at www.goldenboytickets.com, the Golden Boy Promotions Facebook page, or by calling 213-233-2957.

Bronx, New York) – Sixty thousand community college students participate in athletic competition, according to the NCAA. Another 400,000 compete if you include four-year college students. Only two percent will ever become professional athletes.

Twenty-year-old Bronx native Ismael Villarreal (1-0) has already beaten those odds. The two-time New York Golden Gloves champion won his first bout as a professional boxer in November in his debut at The Theater at Madison Square Garden. Villarreal returns to the big stage again at The Garden on Saturday, March 3 on the non-televised undercard of Sergey Kovalev vs. Igor Mikhalkin in a four-round junior middleweight bout against Anthony Woods (1-5) of Douglasville, Georgia.

“I never thought I was going to return (to Madison Square Garden) that quick,” said Villarreal. “It’s pretty cool, and I get to fight in my hometown, so I like it.”

Villarreal remains in New York between fights in order to balance his full-time training schedule and full-time course load at Brooklyn Community College. He is a physical education major, studying subjects including biology and education, with the goal of becoming a teacher. “You’ve always got to have a backup plan. Anything can happen… I can’t drop school.”

Villarreal competed as an amateur while attending Belmont Preparatory High School, founded in the Bronx in 2002 for academically talented students throughout the community. Many of his teachers there became boxing fans, and Villarreal expects to see many of them for his second fight at Madison Square Garden. “They’ve always been supportive,” said Villarreal.

His community college classmates and instructors aren’t as aware of Villarreal’s second full-time job as a professional boxer: “Sometimes they find me on the internet. I would have told them, but I don’t want to interrupt class saying ‘hey, I’m a boxer!'”

Juggling the demands of training and his school obligations makes time management critically important for Villarreal. “I have to go every day, my only day off is Friday. I still have to focus on running, on homework, on the gym. It’s tough but I’ll make it through,” said Villarreal.

Villarreal says the real exhaustion is mental more than physical. “When I go to school and I’m boxing, it’s definitely hard. Some can do it, some can’t … Sometimes it’s hard to manage… no one can say it’s easy, it’s a challenge.”

But Villarreal has discovered the value of discipline, and he says it benefits him in multiple ways. “I’ve always been disciplined when it comes to schoolwork. If anything, I become more disciplined with boxing from the schoolwork,” explained Villarreal.

For his upcoming fight, Villarreal is dropping from middleweight to junior middleweight (154 pounds). He says he’s working on being more active and throwing more punches, especially working to the body. Villarreal’s plan for 2018 is to stay active in the ring. But he also understands at this stage of his career, “sometimes you get tired of waiting, but patience is important … I know everything will pay off in the future.”

About March 3: The Saturday, March 3 main event between Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev and Igor Mikhalkin is a 12-round match-up for the WBO Light Heavyweight World Title at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The co-main event features WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion Dmitry Bivol versus Sullivan Barrera in a 12-round title fight. Tickets range from $50 to $300 and are available at TicketMaster.com and the Madison Square Garden box office. The event is promoted by Main Events, Krusher Promotions and World of Boxing in association with EC Box Promotions and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing® at 10:05 p.m. ET/PT.

Las Vegas – One of the greatest careers in ring history will come to close this Thursday night, when the legendary Roy Jones Junior competes in his final bout as a professional boxer.

Widely considered one of the very best pound-for-pound fighters of all time Jones, 65-9 (47KOs), competes in cruiserweight (200lbs) bout vs Scott Sigmon, 30-11-1 (16KOs). The 10-rounder serves as the main event to a five fight Island Fights main card which features both boxing and mixed martial arts bouts.

The event will be live-streamed and available on video-on-demand basis exclusively on UFCFIGHTPASS, the UFC’s digital streaming service.

Joining combat sport play-by-play veteran TJ De Santis in the commentator booth will be Jeff Lacy. Known as “Left Hook” during his boxing career, Lacy represented the United States at the 2000 Olympics and went on to win the same IBF super-middleweight title Jones had annexed a decade earlier. Lacy also fought Jones in 2009 (the entire fight is available on UFC FIGHT PASS) and will bring a wealth of knowledge to the event.

ROY JONES JUNIOR FLASH QUOTES:

ON FIGHTING ON UFC FIGHT PASS

“This is the first live boxing on UFC FIGHT PASS. I love being the first to do something, so to be the first boxing event on UFC FIGHT PASS is cool. When I turned pro back in 1989, I said I wanted to bring new audiences boxing and that’s what I tried to do. By having my last night as a fighter on the UFC’s (streaming service) I’m bringing new eyeballs to boxing and I’m throwing a spotlight on the boxing and MMA fighters who are on the event.

“I’m been a fan of the UFC for years. Me and (UFC President) Dana White have been friends for a long time, since before he even got started with the UFC. We’ve talked about FIGHT PASS showing a fight (of mine) and it has come about perfectly.”

ON HIS FINAL FIGHT

“It feels different. I’m emotional even thinking about how I’m going to feel on the day. I’m almost tearing up talking. I’m worried about how I am going to feel all day of the fight. I may be crying all day – but once I am in the ring I’ll have to put those tears away because there’s gonna be a guy in the other corner looking to beat me. Scott Sigmon won’t care about those tears. He cares about getting the win, that’s the reality.

“I turned professional in May 1989 in this same arena, but I’ve been doing this since 1979. In 39 years there’s not been a single day where I didn’t put on glove, skip, watch tape or spend time thinking about boxing.

“Boxing has been my life and it is my life. I’ve enjoyed every moment of it. So much of it is still fresh (in my mind), not one thing but so much jumps out when I look back… representing my country at the Olympics in 1988, becoming a world champion for the first time, becoming the No.1 pound-for-pound vs James Toney, winning the world heavyweight title… like it was all yesterday.”

ON GETTING OLDER

“I’m not sad to get older, we all get old. I had a great prime. I was good in my prime, y’know? I wasn’t surprised that I was getting old, and that my abilities were getting more limited. Everybody knows everybody gets old, but I think some guys really don’t think their body will get old.

“I accepted it. People told me to retire but I knew what I could do and I’ve never let anyone tell me what to do.

“There are things I wanted to accomplish that I knew were no longer within my reach. I love boxing, even out of my prime I love boxing like I did when I was champ. But you can’t go on forever no matter how much you love it. It’s time, I’m ready to say goodbye.”

“It was a good fight for my first world title. The thing about that fight was I just wanted to make sure I stayed smart and I stayed focused because one of the first goals in my life was to turn professional and become a world champion. I felt a lot of pressure on my back because this was what I’d worked so hard to do for all those years. I fought the fight with one hand due to injury, but I did what I needed to become world champion.”

“I was already a world champion, but he was the boss. James Toney was The Man at that time, they were calling him the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, and to be the man you have to beat The Man. I couldn’t just get a win, I had to dominate him and show the world that not only was he not the best pound-for-pound, but there was no-one else close to Roy Jones Junior. And that’s what happened. I annihilated the man, dominated him. That was my coming-out party, I showed all my weapons in that fight, I showed everyone, no, hey, this is what the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world really looks like!”

“Losing my undefeated record the way I did (on a controversial disqualification five months earlier) was really bad for me. Y’know, even though everybody who ever saw that thought it was wrong, my undefeated record was still gone. Done. They took my “and 0” away and there was no getting it back. So the second fight came and I made sure to prove who was the better fighter.

“It wasn’t personal. I don’t blame the guy, he didn’t decide to disqualify me for nothin’. It was a life lesson, that’s life. ButI made sure nobody would ever think he was a better fighter than me in that rematch.”

Vs John Ruiz, March 1, 2003, wins WBA heavyweight title on points

“I wanted to be a world champion my whole life but I never once thought of the heavyweight title until it presented itself. This was something that God gave me, way and above more than I ever asked for or expected. It was the chance to make history, to do something nobody would dream of me doing.

“This was history, the first fighter to jump from middleweight to win the heavyweight title in over 100 years. John Ruiz had no clue what he was dealing with or what he was facing. He found out the hard way.”

ON HOW HE WOULD LIKE TO BE REMEMBERED

“The great thing today is it don’t matter what anyone says or what anyone writes, you can type “sickest boxing highlights” into YouTube or Google and you see Roy Jones Junior doing this thing. Nobody can change your mind after you see that. That is pound-for-pound! I did what I did – it happened – it is a fact.

“Nobody else comes close. You can watch me side-by-side with anyone and it’s not close.

“Floyd Mayweather was TBE (The Best Ever) at making money, but look at his highlights and look at mine. You can’t pretend it’s the same. You can’t pretend there’s ever been anyone come close to doing what I did. Nobody you could name could touch me – and I’m talking about nobody who’s around now, nobody who was around in my prime, and nobody who was around any time you can mention outta your mouth.

“In my prime, I was the ruler. Simple as that.

“I understand there’s a lot of great fighters who’ve followed me already since I was the champ – and I hope there’s another who comes along does even better because want to see that – but I haven’t seen anyone do what I did yet. I haven’t seen anyone turn pro at 154lbs and win the heavyweight championship of the world.

“Even the great Sugar Ray Robinson, the pound-for-pound guy that he was, couldn’t win the light heavyweight title after turning pro as a welterweight. He had a difficult time trying that. So that tells you how hard it is to jump up that kind of weight and win.

“So, pound-for-pound the greatest of all time? It isn’t hard to figure out, Roy Jones Junior is your king of the hill.”

All Four Heavyweight World Championship Titles At Stake On Industry-Leading 2018 SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® Schedule

Photo Credit: Matchroom Boxing; Click Image For High-Res Version

NEW YORK – February 5, 2018 – SHOWTIME Sports will present the heavyweight world championship unification between undefeated IBF and WBA World Champion Anthony Joshua and unbeaten WBO World Champion Joseph Parker on Saturday, March 31 live on SHOWTIME from Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales.

The British sensation Joshua, who has knocked out all 20 of his professional opponents, burst onto the global scene with a dramatic knockout of long-reigning heavyweight kingpin Wladimir Klitschko in the universally acclaimed 2017 Fight of the Year. In two fights last year, Joshua drew 168,000 spectators combined to massive stadium events in the U.K. Now, he faces another significant challenge in Parker, a native of New Zealand with 24 wins, no losses and 18 knockouts. Parker is attempting the third world title defense of his WBO belt.

With the addition of Joshua vs. Parker, all four heavyweight world championship belts will be at stake in the same month on SHOWTIME as undefeated American Deontay Wilder (39-0, 38 KOs) will defend his WBC title against unbeaten Luis Ortiz (28-0, 24 KOs) on Saturday, March 3 from Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The four top-rated heavyweights — Wilder, Ortiz, Joshua and Parker — boast a combined record of 111 wins, zero losses and 100 knockouts.

Both heavyweight championships are cornerstones of a remarkable 2018 SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING schedule that now includes 16 undefeated fighters and 13 world titles fights across 11 marquee events through the first six months of the year.

“The heavyweight division is in the midst of a renaissance, and SHOWTIME is delivering all of the pivotal bouts to our subscribers,” said Stephen Espinoza, President, Sports and Event Programing, Showtime Networks Inc. “Anthony Joshua is a global superstar, and we’re proud to present his sixth, and perhaps most challenging, world title fight to the U.S. audience. Joshua vs. Parker will be the 12th heavyweight world championship match on SHOWTIME since Deontay Wilder won his title in 2015, an undisputed industry-leading offering in boxing’s preeminent division.”

Joshua vs. Parker is just the second heavyweight championship unification in history between undefeated world titleholders. The only fighter to emerge victorious from a matchup of unbeaten heavyweight world champions was Mike Tyson in 1987.

The event is promoted by Matchroom Boxing in association with Duco Events. SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING will televise the event live from Principality Stadium where organizers expect a sell-out of 80,000 spectators. The host of SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING is Brian Custer. Mauro Ranallo calls the action from ringside along with International Boxing Hall of Fame analyst Al Bernstein and former two-division world champion Paul Malignaggi. SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSIP BOXING is produced by David Dinkins Jr, and directed by Chuck McKean. The start time for the March 31 telecast will be announced.

Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CBS Corporation, owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ and FLIX®, and also offers SHOWTIME ON DEMAND®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ ON DEMAND and FLIX ON DEMAND®, and the network’s authentication service SHOWTIME ANYTIME®. Showtime Digital Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of SNI, operates the stand-alone streaming service SHOWTIME®. SHOWTIME is currently available to subscribers via cable, DBS and telco providers, and as a stand-alone streaming service through Apple®, Roku®, Amazon, Google, Xbox One and Samsung. Consumers can also subscribe to SHOWTIME via Hulu, YouTube TV, Sling TV, DirecTV Now, Sony PlayStation® Vue and Amazon Channels. SNI also manages Smithsonian Networks™, a joint venture between SNI and the Smithsonian Institution, which offers Smithsonian Channel™, and offers Smithsonian Earth™ through SN Digital LLC. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME PPV®. For more information, go to www.SHO.com